HOW TO PRONOUNCE
bounce
/baʊns/
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American Pronunciation Guide · 1:03
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What does bounce mean?
verb
- To change the direction of motion after hitting an obstacle.
- To move quickly up and then down (or vice versa), once or repeatedly.
- To cause to move quickly up and down, or back and forth, once or repeatedly.
More meanings (39)
verb
- To suggest or introduce (an idea, etc.) to (off or by) someone, in order to gain feedback.
- To leap or spring suddenly or unceremoniously; to bound.
- To move rapidly (between).
- (informal) To be refused by a bank because it is drawn on insufficient funds.
- (informal) To fail to cover (have sufficient funds for) (a cheque/check drawn on one's account).
- (slang) To leave.
- (slang) To have sexual intercourse.
- To attack unexpectedly.
- To turn power to (a device) off and back on; to reset; to reboot.
- To return undelivered.
- To land hard and lift off again due to excess momentum.
- To land hard at unsurvivable velocity with fatal results.
- To mix (two or more tracks of a multi-track audio recording) and record the result onto a single track, in order to free up tracks for further material to be added.
- To render two or more tracks to computer storage so that they can be played back and re-recorded with further material added.
- (slang) To race poorly after a successful race.
- (slang) To travel to a less busy section of a railway line, against one's intended direction of travel, usually for the purpose of obtaining a seat.
- (dated, slang) To eject violently, as from a room; to discharge unceremoniously, as from employment.
- (dated, slang) To work as a bouncer.
- (archaic, slang) To bully; to scold.
- (archaic, slang) To boast; to bluster.
- (archaic) To strike or thump, so as to make a sudden noise upon rebound; to knock loudly.
noun
- A change of direction of motion after hitting the ground or an obstacle.
- A movement up and then down (or vice versa), once or repeatedly.
- An email that returns to the sender because of a delivery failure.
- A hypothetical event where a collapsing system, such as a universe in the Big Bounce theory, reaches a point of extreme density and then rebounds back into an expanding phase, essentially reversing the contraction due to quantum mechanical effects.
- (slang) The sack, dismissal.
- Scyliorhinus canicula, a European dogfish.
- A genre of hip-hop music of New Orleans, characterized by often lewd call-and-response chants.
- (slang) Drugs.
- (slang) Swagger.
- (slang) A good beat in music.
- (slang) A talent for leaping.
- (informal) An increase in popularity.
- An obstacle for a horse to jump over, consisting of two fences close together so that the horse cannot take a full stride between them, nor jump both at once.
- (slang) The situation where a horse races poorly after a successful race.
- (archaic) A bang, boom.
- (archaic) A drink based on brandy, cherry bounce.
- (archaic) A heavy, sudden, and often noisy, blow or thump.
- (archaic) Bluster; brag; untruthful boasting; audacious exaggeration; an impudent lie; a bouncer.
Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0
IPA pronunciation
/baʊns/
CMU Pronouncing Dictionary ↗Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.
In the pages of books
See this word in context.
“Say—if you give me much more of your sass I’ll take and bounce a rock off’n your head.”
When I opened my door in the evening, off they would go with a squeak and a bounce.
More book examples (3)
For comfort they retreated to their cabins, where with tightly wedged feet they let the ship bounce and tumble.
The overhead is mainly a point winner through speed, since its bounce is so high that a slow placement often allows time for a recovery.
As you pass his village he will bounce out on you with the fiercest bark and the most menacing snarl; but lo!